19 Best Demand Side Platforms In 2024
10 Best Demand Side Platform Shortlist
Here's my pick of the 10 best software from the 19 tools reviewed.
Our one-on-one guidance will help you find the perfect fit.
Marketing isn't the easiest task, but there's nothing more essential for the growth of your ecommerce store. A well-placed advertisement is the bridge between you and your most loyal future customers.
But, doing it willy nilly is just a waste of cash. That's why the best ecommerce stores are powered by awesome demand side platforms (DSPs, for those who prefer brevity).
Take a peek at the ad strategies of your fave brands with an ad intelligence tool and you'll see a sophisticated array of DSPs driving their marketing success.
Demand side platforms might seem like a niche tool, but they pack a punch—automated ad buying, precise audience targeting, real-time bidding, and cross-channel campaign management, to name just a few.
While your ecommerce platform might cover the basics early on, scaling up requires the power of specialized tools. For advertising, this means finding the top DSP to maximize your ROI and streamline your ad efforts.
That's where we step in (and why you're reading this intro right now, let’s be honest).
With my ecommerce expertise and our comprehensive scoring system, we've rounded up the top demand side platforms to transform your store into the advertising powerhouse you envision.
What is a Demand Side Platform?
A Demand Side Platform (DSP) is a powerful tool for ecommerce merchants, automating the purchase of online advertising to reach your target audience more effectively.
It allows you to buy ad space across multiple ad exchanges and data platforms from one centralized dashboard.
For ecommerce merchants, DSPs are essential.
They help you optimize ad spend through precise audience targeting using real-time bidding. With tools for campaign management, data analysis, and budget allocation, DSPs streamline the ad buying process, ensuring every dollar is well spent.
In short, DSPs are designed to meet the needs of ecommerce merchants, simplifying digital advertising and driving business growth.
Why Trust Our Demand Side Platform Reviews
We’ve been testing and reviewing ecommerce software since 2021.
As ecommerce experts ourselves, we know how critical, and how difficult it is to make the right decision when selecting software.
We invest in deep research to help our audience make better software purchasing decisions.
We’ve tested more than 2,000 tools for different ecommerce use cases and written over 1,000 comprehensive software reviews.
Learn how we stay transparent & our review methodology.
Comparing the Best Demand Side Platforms, Side-by-Side
Let’s look at this in one simple comparison table, folks. First up, the pricing details. Then, click Compare Software to see other feature comparison.
| Tools | Price | |
|---|---|---|
| StackAdapt | Pricing upon request | Website |
| DemandBase | Pricing upon request | Website |
| Criteo | From $1/click. | Website |
| Taboola | From $10/day. | Website |
| Xandr | Pricing upon request | Website |
| The Trade Desk | From 17% of ad spend. | Website |
| Moloco | Pricing upon request | Website |
| Adobe Advertising Cloud | Pricing upon request | Website |
| Amazon DSP | $50,000 minimum advertising spend. | Website |
| Adform | Pricing upon request | Website |
Compare Software Specs Side by Side
Use our comparison chart to review and evaluate software specs side-by-side.
Compare SoftwareHow to Choose the Best Demand Side Platform
Choosing the right demand-side platform (DSP) is crucial for optimizing your ad spend and reaching your target audience effectively.
Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you make the best choice:
- Evaluate inventory and reach. Consider the platform’s access to ad inventory and its reach across various channels and markets. A good DSP should provide access to a wide range of ad exchanges, supply-side platforms (SSPs), and premium publishers to help expand your reach and target specific audiences globally.
- Assess targeting capabilities. Examine the platform’s targeting options and data integration features. Advanced DSPs should offer demographic, behavioral, contextual, and geographic targeting, along with the ability to integrate first-party and third-party data to enhance audience segmentation and campaign performance.
- Ensure transparency and reporting. Look for platforms that offer clear and detailed reporting and analytics. Prioritize DSPs that provide real-time reporting, customizable dashboards, and granular insights into campaign performance to optimize campaigns and demonstrate ROI.
- Test ease of use and support. Check the platform’s user interface and the level of support offered. A user-friendly interface with intuitive campaign management tools improves workflow efficiency, and robust customer support, training resources, and ongoing assistance are essential, especially for complex campaigns.
- Analyze cost structure and pricing model. Understand the platform’s pricing structure and evaluate it against your budget and campaign goals. Consider various fee structures like percentage of media spend, CPM-based pricing, or flat-fee models, and weigh these costs against the platform’s features and potential ROI.
The 10 Best Demand Side Platforms, Reviewed
Here, we’ll review the best demand side platforms, highlighting their top features, their pros and cons, and screenshots that show the interface.
StackAdapt uses machine learning processes to help brands plan ad buying campaigns to grow their business using multiple channels.
Why I picked StackAdapt: I chose to add StackAdapt to this list because of its ability to help your ecommerce business plan ad campaigns. It provides a creative studio that will help you test your campaigns before launching and get access to data-driven campaigns’ potential. StackAdapt’s ad previewer feature allows you to evaluate the performance of your marketing campaigns beforehand.
StackAdapt Standout Features and Integrations
Features include cross-channel ad formats to launch video, native, desktop, tablet, and mobile campaigns. StackAdapt provides campaign effectiveness measurement tools that use artificial intelligence-powered reports that you can schedule to deliver precise performance reports.
Integrations include connections with third-party systems that will help you add or expand advertising capabilities through popular platforms. These include AgencyAnalytics, Airbyte, Databox, HubSpot, Improvado, Measured, NinjaCat, Salesforce, Tray.io, Windsor.ai, and other software options.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Easy to use and understand.
- Flexibility to execute various strategies.
- World-class support.
Cons:
- Creative management tool is clunky.
- Reporting navigation can be complex.
Demandbase helps B2B ecommerce brands find go-to-market opportunities earlier and create more intelligent marketing campaigns.
Why I picked Demandbase: If your business focuses on B2B sales, I added Demandbase to this list to help you develop go-to-market strategies to help you plan campaigns to engage with potential customers and convince them to buy your products. Demandbase helps you focus on account-based campaigns and build a unified account data foundation. You can use the platform to connect your first-party data with Demandbase’s third-party data and artificial intelligence to increase your pipeline and revenue.
Demandbase Standout Features and Integrations
Features include in-depth insights to help you identify where your teams need to close more sales by contacting decision-makers who are ready to buy. Demandbase also provides automation capabilities that handle your tedious account-based marketing tasks to help you save time and develop a more robust pipeline.
Integrations include connections with some of the top systems ecommerce businesses use to manage their operations. You can integrate Demandbase with applications such as Adobe Analytics, Domo, Google Analytics, HubSpot, Marketo, Microsoft Dynamics 365, Optimizely, Salesforce, Slack, Workato, and other software options.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Clean user interface.
- Provides in-market account intelligence.
- Monitors how long prospects look at content.
Cons:
- Experiences glitches from time to time.
- Reporting can be more intuitive.
Criteo helps brands reach target audiences and increase impressions by providing dynamic retargeting capabilities.
Why I picked Criteo: The platform is among some of the top demand side platforms because of its dynamic retargeting features. Criteo’s AI Engine can monitor your customers’ engagement and uses its retargeting capabilities to power product recommendations in your advertisements. Criteo provides access to some of the best ad inventory on the market with thousands of top publishers that allow you to get better placements for your retargeting campaigns.
Criteo Standout Features and Integrations
Features include contextual advertising tools that leverage commerce and contextual data to enhance your campaigns. Criteo also offers retail media features that can reach and convert shoppers via relevant ads near your digital retailer and marketplace websites’ digital point of sale.
Integrations include connections with select third-party platforms that Criteo puts through an extensive review process to ensure best-in-class service to enhance your processes. These include Adjust, Blueshift, Census, Flowbox, Klaviyo, Leadsbridge, MightySignal, mParticle, Oracle Data Cloud, Shopify Plus, and other software options.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Clear performance reports.
- Simple navigation.
- Easy to use.
Cons:
- Support needs work.
- Inconsistent performance.
Taboola provides native advertising capabilities that allow ecommerce businesses to build brand awareness by connecting with the right audience throughout all web platforms.
Why I picked Taboola: Through native advertisement tools from Taboola, you can publish content on some of the top websites across the internet. You can use Taboola to effectively target B2C or B2B audiences and operate separate campaigns if you target both of these audiences. The platform also offers comprehensive reporting tools that help you monitor real-time content performance across your web channels.
Taboola Standout Features and Integrations
Features include advanced predictive engines that process inputs from various sources to ensure your content matches the readers’ needs, meaning your ads will only reach target audiences. Taboola also allows audiences to rate and share your content on various social media platforms, allowing you to reach even more people.
Integrations include over 50 popular systems that help ecommerce businesses enhance workflows and automate processes. These connections include applications such as Brax, Desktop.com, Hevo, HubSpot CRM, Improvado, Retargetly, Sitejet, TapClicks, wecantrack, WordPress, and other software options.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Excellent customer support.
- Simple campaign setup.
- Precise KPIs.
Cons:
- Approval system needs work.
- User interface is bulky.
Xandr is one of the leading demand side platforms that provide programmatic advertising to help brands reach households with smart TVs.
Why I picked Xandr: The platform provides your brand with high-quality traffic by helping you advertise your ecommerce business to smart TV households. Xandr allows you to achieve your greatest advertising outcomes by providing access to exclusive inventory, powerful statistics, precise targeting, and data management. Xandr also gathers top-class, first-party data to help you can target any of the over 2,500 audience segments.
Xandr Standout Features and Integrations
Features include real-time campaign attribution that uses a robust reporting system that provides digestible and visualized statistic bites to give you a highlight of advertising performance. The platform also offers a significant number of cross-channel ad formats, such as mobile display, in-app ads, programmatic audio, and more, that are clearly rendered in necessary environments and can be delivered in all suitable resolutions.
Integrations include third-party systems that will help automate many advertising processes and allow you to create simple workflows. These connections include applications such as Adplorer, Advendio, Bidetellect, Humming, Meetrics, PubPower, Qloo, Retargetly, The Moneytizer, Yieldlab, and other software options.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Many targeting options are available.
- Easy to use.
- Simple user interface.
Cons:
- Long creative approvals.
- Needs more fraud detection capabilities.
The Trade Desk allows ecommerce merchants to reach audiences throughout their digital journeys via an extensive number of advertising channels.
Why I picked The Trade Desk: The platform works well with demand side platform experts and newbies that want to use any kind of ad channel to reach their audience. The Trade Desk allows you to use advertising channels such as connected TV, video, audio, digital out-of-home, mobile, display, and native ads. When using The Trade Desk, your online store will receive guaranteed, high-quality traffic at excellent volumes.
The Trade Desk Standout Features and Integrations
Features include reporting tools that allow you to analyze performance throughout the impression-to-conversion stages. You will also get planning tools that help you activate more data, collect audience insights, and focus your budget on the best media and strategies.
Integrations include connections with beneficial third-party systems such as Adjust, Blueshift, Hightouch, Live Ramp, mParticle, NinjaCat, Permutive, Salesforce, Tealium, Tray.io, and other software options. The Trade Desk also provides an API that allows you to create custom connections with your current toolset.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Short learning curve.
- Helpful customer support.
- User-friendly interface.
Cons:
- Reporting doesn’t go past 90 days.
- Expensive fees.
Moloco uses brands’ first-party data to power performance-based advertising solutions that will help them acquire and re-engage high-value customers.
Why I picked Moloco: The platform uses performance-based advertising tools to help your brand get in front of the right audiences at the right time and attract potential customers most likely to convert. Moloco’s machine learning models will automate your entire campaign process, including budgeting, bidding, targeting, and developing creatives, allowing you to focus on business growth. You can use Moloco to maximize your performance-based campaigns at any budget to help you scale by leveraging the platform’s extensive infrastructure.
Moloco Standout Features and Integrations
Features include real-time insights and reporting to help you get an in-depth understanding of campaigns’ performance and enhance future marketing. Moloco also helps you monitor creative performance through A/B testing, production, and other beneficial capabilities.
Integrations include connections with various reporting tools, such as Adjust, App Annie, AppsFlyer, Appsumer, Bidalgo, Kochava, Singular, and Tenjin. Moloco also provides an API to help you create custom third-party integrations.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Regular feature updates.
- Proactive support.
- Transparent onboarding process.
Cons:
- User interface can be more customizable.
- Needs more detailed targeting options.
Adobe Advertising Cloud helps brands create all types of TV advertising campaigns across many devices to enable them to reach a wider audience.
Why I picked Adobe Advertising Cloud: I believe what makes Adobe Advertising Cloud an excellent choice for this article is its ability to provide your brand with access to more than 50 TV broadcasters. It focuses on TV advertising and other beneficial ad formats, inventory management, and people-based marketing that will increase your return on investment. Adobe Advertising Cloud also allows you to easily manage and track advertising campaigns in a single area.
Adobe Advertising Cloud Standout Features and Integrations
Features include artificial intelligence optimization that provides spend forecasts and real-time campaign optimization opportunities. Adobe Advertising Cloud also has content creation tools that will help you connect creative and marketing teams and allow them to create a significant number of ads at scale.
Integrations include connections with some of the best systems that will allow you to add features and automate advertising tasks. These include Adobe Analytics, BlueShift, Branch.io, Improvado, Invoca, NinjaCat, Tealium, Uptempto, Zendesk, and other software options.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Manageable interface.
- Provides real-time data.
- Reliable work environment.
Cons:
- Uploading large files is slow.
- Difficult to use.
Amazon DSP helps ecommerce brands advertise on Amazon and other Amazon-owned sites.
Why I picked Amazon DSP: Amazon is one of the largest online retailers on the planet, so I wanted to add a way for you to be able to place your ads on this massive marketplace. Amazon DSP allows you to advertise your ecommerce products, no matter if you sell products on the Amazon marketplace or not. With Amazon DSP, you can get video and display ad templates you can customize to start developing your creatives.
Amazon DSP Standout Features and Integrations
Features include exclusive insights and shopping signals that will connect your brand with relevant audiences on and off the Amazon marketplace. The platform also provides performance reporting that allows you to effectively plan marketing strategies.
Integrations include an API to connect with other applications. It provides you with the ability to manage demand side advertising operations and connect with third-party systems through it.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Top-notch reporting and analytics tools.
- Extends ads beyond the Amazon ecosystem.
- Unparalleled targeting capabilities.
Cons:
- Minimum spend requirements.
- Steep learning curve.
Adform helps brands get the best possible return from their advertising by providing top-quality, healthy traffic from various environments.
Why I picked Adform: As many people know, healthy traffic is the best kind, so I wanted to add Adform to this list for this reason alone. Adform generates 100% healthy, viewable traffic that is bot-free and eliminates other ad fraud threats. When using Adform, you will get the best traffic from top countries such as the US, Spain, Denmark, Netherlands, Sweden, Poland, and other beneficial traffic regions.
Adform Standout Features and Integrations
Features include a broad advertising reach thanks to the tool’s integration with some of the largest traffic partners, ensuring you reach the best audiences globally. Adform allows you to generate reports in real-time and on-demand after choosing relevant performance criteria to make a report.
Integrations include connections with various systems to enhance productivity, such as Browsi, Channable, Data Virtuality, Lyftrondata, Onlymega, Publitas, ROIVENUE, Salesforce, Tray.io, Zuuvi, and other software options. Adform also has an API you can use to create custom integrations with your current applications.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Regular updates.
- Friendly user interface.
- Excellent custom reporting capabilities.
Cons:
- Needs more tracking visualizations.
- Lacks optimization for smaller screens.
Other Options
The above list is fairly robust, and I believe that you’ll find some worthwhile demand side platform options. However, I decided to add some other options below for your consideration.
Our Selection Criteria for Demand Side Platforms
Demand-side platforms (DSPs) are essential tools for digital advertisers, enabling them to manage and optimize programmatic ad buying across multiple ad exchanges.
When selecting a DSP, it's crucial to evaluate platforms based on specific criteria that address key use cases and pain points in the ad buying process.
Here's the framework we use:
Core DSP functionality (25% of total weighting score)
To be considered among the best, a DSP must support essential use cases:
- Real-time bidding capabilities for dynamic, efficient ad placement.
- Cross-channel campaign management to streamline ad placement across display, video, mobile, and social channels.
- Audience targeting and segmentation to reach precise demographics, behaviors, and geographies.
- Robust reporting and analytics tools to track and optimize campaign performance.
- Integration with major ad exchanges and SSPs to access a broad inventory of ad spaces.
Additional standout features (25% of total weighting score)
Identifying platforms with unique features involves looking for:
- Advanced AI-driven optimization algorithms to enhance ad performance and placement.
- Comprehensive fraud detection and brand safety measures to protect your campaigns.
- First-party data integration and activation for more targeted, effective ad campaigns.
- Customizable bidding strategies that adapt to various campaign goals.
- Cross-device tracking and attribution to measure user engagement across multiple touchpoints.
Usability (10% of total weighting score)
When evaluating usability, we consider:
- An intuitive campaign setup and management interface that simplifies tasks.
- Clear data visualization and reporting dashboards that make it easy to interpret performance.
- Efficient workflows for daily campaign optimization tasks to save time and effort.
- Customizable user interfaces to match team preferences.
- Mobile-friendly access for on-the-go campaign management.
Onboarding (10% of total weighting score)
For onboarding, essential aspects include:
- Comprehensive training resources, including videos, guides, and webinars.
- Dedicated onboarding specialists to assist with initial setup.
- Step-by-step setup wizards to guide new users through campaign creation.
- Pre-built campaign templates for common ad types to simplify the setup process.
- Data migration assistance to ensure a smooth transition from previous platforms.
Customer support (10% of total weighting score)
Effective customer support is evaluated by:
- 24/7 support availability through multiple channels, such as live chat, phone, and email.
- Dedicated account managers for enterprise clients, offering personalized assistance.
- Regular platform updates and bug fixes to maintain platform reliability.
- An active user community for peer support and knowledge sharing.
- Proactive communication regarding system changes or issues to keep users informed.
Value for money (10% of total weighting score)
Assessing value for money involves looking at:
- Transparent pricing structures, whether based on a percentage of media spend, CPM, or flat fees.
- Scalable pricing options that cater to businesses of all sizes.
- No hidden costs for essential features or integrations.
- Performance guarantees or SLAs for enterprise clients.
- Competitive rates compared to similar DSPs in the market.
Customer reviews (10% of total weighting score)
In evaluating customer reviews, focus is placed on:
- Overall satisfaction scores across multiple review platforms.
- Specific feedback on key features and functionality to identify strengths and weaknesses.
- Reports on customer support experiences and responsiveness.
- Long-term user retention and platform loyalty as indicators of reliability.
- Comparisons from users who have switched from competing DSPs to gauge relative performance.
Trends for Demand Side Platforms in 2024
Demand-side platforms (DSPs) are evolving rapidly to keep pace with the changing digital landscape. In 2024 and 2025, several key trends are shaping the future of DSP technology:
- AI-powered optimization. AI is increasingly enhancing DSP functionalities, driving improvements in real-time bidding, audience targeting, and overall campaign optimization. These advanced algorithms allow for more precise ad placements and better return on investment (ROI).
- Privacy-centric solutions. DSPs are adapting to the cookieless future by developing privacy-compliant methods like contextual targeting and leveraging first-party data. These strategies address privacy concerns while maintaining advertising effectiveness.
- Cross-channel integration. DSPs are expanding their capabilities across multiple channels and devices, including emerging platforms like connected TV (CTV) and digital out-of-home (DOOH) advertising. This integration provides a holistic approach to audience engagement and campaign measurement.
- Focus on sustainability. Sustainability is becoming a priority, with DSPs incorporating tools to measure and reduce the carbon footprint of digital campaigns. This includes the addition of sustainability metrics and brand safety features, meeting the demand for responsible advertising.
- Advanced measurement models. DSPs are offering more sophisticated measurement capabilities, such as multi-touch attribution and incrementality testing. These tools provide advertisers with deeper insights into campaign performance across the customer journey, improving the understanding of each touchpoint's impact.
These trends highlight how DSPs are becoming more intelligent, integrated, and responsive to the evolving needs of advertisers in the digital ecosystem.
Key Features of Demand Side Platforms
Demand-side platforms (DSPs) are essential tools for digital advertisers, streamlining the ad buying process and optimizing campaigns across multiple channels. Here are the key features that make DSPs effective for programmatic advertising:
- Real-time bidding (RTB). DSPs participate in ad exchanges, bidding on ad impressions in real-time to maximize placement value and reach the target audience at the optimal moment.
- Advanced targeting options. DSPs offer sophisticated targeting based on demographics, behavior, and location, enabling highly personalized ads that enhance campaign effectiveness.
- Cross-channel integration. Manage campaigns across display, video, mobile, and social media from a single platform, ensuring consistent messaging and optimized performance.
- Data management and analytics. DSPs provide robust tools for collecting and analyzing data, supporting data-driven decisions that refine targeting strategies and improve performance.
- AI and machine learning. Advanced DSPs leverage AI to optimize bidding strategies and audience targeting, automating complex decisions and increasing campaign efficiency.
- Inventory quality control. Features like fraud detection and brand safety measures protect against low-quality placements, ensuring ad spend is used effectively and maintaining brand reputation.
- Customizable reporting and dashboards. Track and visualize key metrics with flexible reporting tools, essential for demonstrating ROI and making informed campaign adjustments.
- Third-party data integration. Enhance targeting and audience insights by incorporating third-party data, improving the effectiveness of first-party data.
- Audience segmentation and management. Create and manage detailed audience profiles for highly targeted ad experiences, crucial for reaching the right audience at the right time.
- Frequency capping and budget management. Control ad frequency and budgets to prevent ad fatigue and ensure efficient spending.
These features make DSPs indispensable for modern advertisers, driving more targeted, cost-effective, and successful programmatic campaigns.
Benefits of Using Demand Side Platforms
Demand-side platforms (DSPs) provide numerous advantages for ecommerce merchants aiming to optimize their advertising efforts:
- Enhanced targeting capabilities. DSPs enable precise audience segmentation, allowing you to reach specific demographics, behaviors, and interests with tailored ads. This targeted approach increases conversion rates by delivering relevant content to the right audience.
- Cost efficiency. DSPs optimize ad spend through real-time bidding, ensuring you only pay for ad impressions that meet your criteria. This reduces waste on ineffective placements, maximizing your budget's impact.
- Streamlined campaign management. Managing ad campaigns across various channels from a single platform simplifies the process. DSPs offer centralized control with automated bidding, budget allocation, and ad placements, allowing you to focus on strategy.
- Improved performance and ROI. Real-time analytics provide immediate insights into campaign performance, enabling quick adjustments. Dynamic creative optimization tailors ad content in real-time, improving engagement and ROI.
- Cross-device reach. DSPs ensure your ads reach users across all devices—desktop, mobile, and tablet—providing a consistent message and enhancing the user experience. This multi-device targeting creates cohesive campaigns that follow users as they switch between devices.
- Scalability. DSPs are adaptable to your business's growth, allowing you to scale your advertising efforts without needing proportional increases in resources. They also offer global reach, enabling you to access international ad inventories and expand your market.
- Advanced data utilization. Comprehensive data management capabilities allow you to refine targeting and improve campaign effectiveness. Detailed analytics support informed decision-making, enhancing your strategy with data-driven insights.
- Fraud prevention. DSPs include fraud detection measures, ensuring your ad spend is not wasted on fraudulent activities. Enhanced security features help maintain your brand’s integrity.
These benefits make DSPs essential for driving efficient, targeted, and scalable advertising strategies, ultimately boosting your ecommerce business's performance.
Costs & Pricing of Demand Side Platforms
Demand-side platforms (DSPs) offer various pricing models and tiers designed to meet the needs of different businesses.
Here's an overview of typical pricing tiers, along with which types of brands they are best suited for:
| Plan Type | Average Price | Common Features | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry-Level Plan | $100-$500/month | Basic ad inventory access, limited targeting options, standard reporting, basic customer support. | Small businesses, startups, or brands new to programmatic advertising that need cost-effective options. |
| Mid-Tier Plan | $1,000-$5,000/month | Full ad inventory access, advanced targeting and optimization, detailed analytics, API access, account support. | Growing SMBs (small to medium-sized businesses) seeking more robust features and dedicated support. |
| Enterprise Plan | $10,000+/month | Custom solutions, advanced AI-driven optimization, premium inventory, white-label options, 24/7 support. | Large enterprises with complex advertising needs, requiring advanced tools, customization, and premium support. |
Key points to consider:
- Entry-level plans: Best for small businesses or startups, these plans provide essential features but come with limited targeting and support. They are ideal for those testing the waters of programmatic advertising with a tight budget.
- Mid-tier plans: Suitable for growing SMBs that need more comprehensive features, including advanced targeting and detailed analytics. These plans often offer better support and API access, making them a good fit for businesses expanding their programmatic strategies.
- Enterprise plans: Designed for large enterprises with extensive advertising needs, these plans are customizable and include advanced features such as AI-driven optimization and premium ad inventory. They cater to businesses that require top-tier support, white-label options, and full API integrations.
- Pricing models: Many DSPs, such as The Trade Desk and Google Marketing Platform (DV360), use a percentage of ad spend for pricing, particularly at the enterprise level, which can lead to varying costs depending on the scale of the campaigns.
- No free plans: Major DSPs typically do not offer free plans, though free trials or limited-time offers might be available to help businesses evaluate the platform before committing.
These tiers provide a general framework, but actual costs can vary significantly based on specific business needs, ad spend volume, and desired features.
Demand Side Platforms FAQs
When searching for new demand side platforms, many people will have additional questions about these systems. Here are some of the most common questions people ask when examining new DSPs and detailed answers to help you.
What is demand side platform vs sell side platform?
Demand side platforms provide you with all the information required to buy advertising from various publishers. DSPs don’t own or buy media from publishers; instead, they communicate with a sell side platform through an ad exchange.
Sell side platforms (SSP) are tools where publishers list their inventory on ad exchanges and communicate with DSPs regarding impression details. Together they optimize the digital advertising economy and simplify the ad bidding and ad inventory management processes.
How much do demand side platforms cost?
The cost of demand side platforms (DSPs) varies widely based on the features and services they offer. Typically, DSPs charge a percentage of your media spend or a flat service fee.
Several factors can influence the final cost, including the complexity of your campaigns, their frequency, and other critical considerations. Prices can range significantly—think $1 per click, $10 per day, 17% of ad spend, $12,500 per month, or a minimum $50,000 ad spend.
Unlike other software services, DSP pricing isn’t standardized, making it tricky to pinpoint a specific range from high to low cost. Instead, your total cost will largely depend on the volume of ads you run and the number of clicks or conversions you achieve.
Can small businesses benefit from using demand side platforms?
Yes, small businesses can benefit from using DSPs. While DSPs are often associated with larger enterprises, many platforms offer scalable solutions that can be tailored to fit the needs and budgets of smaller businesses.
By automating ad buying and optimizing targeting, DSPs can help small businesses reach their desired audience more effectively and efficiently.
How do demand side platforms integrate with other marketing tools?
DSPs typically integrate with various ad exchanges, supply side platforms, data management platforms, analytics tools, payment gateways, and brand safety solutions. These integrations enhance the functionality of the DSP, allowing for more comprehensive campaign management and improved performance tracking.
Other Ecommerce Support Software Reviews
Here are other tool reviews for ecommerce support software that you can use alongside your new demand side platform.
- Best Ecommerce Tools
- Landing Page Builders
- Ecommerce Fraud Prevention Software
- Social Commerce Platforms
Make Your Brand in Demand
Good marketers don't shy away from ad spend if they know they can get more back than they put in. It's called ROI, folks. Plus, with great DSPs, you can spend less energy while seeing bigger gains.
Talk about having your cake and eating it, too.
I hope this list enables you to start doing less and getting more for your ecommerce brand. It's a noble (and achievable) goal.
If you’re in the decision process for ecommerce software to handle multiple functions in your online store, or you need more advice to enhance your operations, sign up for The Ecomm Manager Newsletter. As a subscriber, you’ll receive the information and advice you need to save your budget and increase operational productivity.
Related Read: An Expert’s Guide To Ecommerce PPC Management